Category: History
Without George Washington, America Wouldn’t Have A 250th Birthday
No one looms larger in the story of our nation’s struggle for independence than George Washington, who today seems almost mythical.
The Federalist’s Notable Books Of 2025
Seasons greetings! It’s time for another exciting and sprawling books recommendation column.
The Soundness of a Discipline
Ken Burns has come in for some deserved criticism for pushing the line, in his new documentary on the American…
The Real First Thanksgiving Happened In Virginia Two Years Before The Pilgrims
It was English settlers in Virginia, not Pilgrims in New England, who observed America’s first Thanksgiving.
Giving History the Human Touch
America owes all her triumphs to the humans who crawled across battlefields, toiled in factories, blasted through mountains, sermonized on soapboxes, and experimented in labs. American history—world history—is human history more than anything. The late David McCullough understood this as well as anyone, and in the posthumous collection of his essays and speeches, History Matters, this basic idea is a consistent throughline.
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In the Mind of McNamara
One of the few aspects of the Vietnam war about which most historians agree is that Robert McNamara horribly mismanaged it as secretary of defense. There is no agreement, however, on how McNamara did the nation such a disservice. For those who view American intervention in Vietnam as unnecessary and inherently futile, McNamara is condemned for getting the United States into the war and then for refusing to get it out once he himself became disillusioned. For those who view the intervention as a noble cause that could have ended victoriously, McNamara’s principal failing was his imposition of severe restraints on the military.
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Justice Gorsuch: ‘The Greatest Danger America Faces Today’ Is ‘Itself’
‘Thomas Jefferson said an ignorant people will never remain free for long, and he’s right,’ Justice Gorsuch said.
Armistice Day on the Western Front and in Russia
World War I ended in Russia on March 3, 1918, with the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The signatories…
Not Lost in Translation
A new translation of Thucydides is an occasion to be celebrated. An Athenian, Thucydides is the historian of the war that dealt a devastating blow to the city-states of ancient Greece in the fifth century B.C. The Peloponnesian War was a 27-year-long conflict between the two major power blocs of the historian’s world, one led by his own country, Athens, and the other led by its rival, Sparta. Only one side could win but, in the end, both sides paid a price in blood, treasure, and spirit. A disaster but one that in Thucydides’ hands offers one of civilization’s most powerful learning experiences.
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Places To Visit In D.C. Unaffected By The Government Shutdown
If you’re at a loss for what to do in Washington during the shutdown, or if you’re looking for off-the-beaten-path places to visit once the government reopens, check out this list.
